Floatant

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A chemical agent applied to foam or liquids to prevent collapse by lowering surface tension and enhancing buoyancy
2. A compound used to keep bubbles stable in foams or to make substances float more easily by reducing surface tension
3. A material that helps maintain the structure of frothy substances by decreasing the liquid's surface tension and supporting flotation

Etymology: "Floatant" is a plain formation: the verb "float" with the suffix "-ant", which forms nouns denoting an agent or thing that performs an action. A floatant is therefore something that makes things float, and the word is used for substances that reduce surface tension so that a liquid spreads or lets objects sit on top of it rather than sink. The suffix is the same one found in words like "lubricant" and "propellant," which is a useful clue to how the word was built. Because "-ant" attaches to a verb stem to name the thing doing the work, "floatant" fits a pattern English has used for a long time, applied here to a technical sense of "float" rather than the everyday one of drifting on water.

Synonyms: floater, buoyant object